Car-seal.



J. W. BOWER & H. W. GREEMANN.

GAB. SEAL.

APPLICATION FILED 11113.19, 1912.

1,057,925, Patented Apr. 1, 1913.

WITNESSES INVENTORS ATTUR/VEYS coLuMnM PLANGGRAPH co., WASHINGTON. DA c.

' TED STATES PATENT GEFICE.

.JAMES W. BOWEB, AND HARVEY W. GREEMANN, 0F SEYMOUR, INDIANA.

CAR-SEAL.

T0 all whom I? may concern Be it known that we7 JAMES W. Bownn and HARVEY'W. GREEMANN, citizens of the United States, and residents of Seymour, in the county of Jackson and State of Indiana, have invented a new and Improved Car- Seal, of which the following is a full, clear,

and exact description.

Our invention comprehends a car seal of new and improved construct-ion, and the principal object of the invention is to provide a device which will be simple in construction, economical in cost and efcient in operation.

To this end the invention consists in the novel construction and combination of parts, adapted to be operated in a particular manner, as herein shown and described and more particularly pointed out in the appended claim.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of the seal in closed position; Fig. 2 is a partial vertical sectional view thereof; Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2; and Fig. 4 is a plan vievi7 of the blank from which the seal is made; while Fig. 5 is a partial vert-ical sectional view showing a portion of the seal after folding and before being brought into closed position.

The seal comprises a body member and a coperating extension carried thereby; it is obvious that the sizes of the body member and the extension may be varied in order to adapt the device to different uses, the materials of which the parts are made being also capable of wide variation without departing from the inventive idea.

The body member `is of considerably greater length than width and adjacent one end is provided with a transversely extending slit 10; at some distance from the slit the body member is provided on opposite sides with the offsets 11, the portion between these offsets and the slit forming an extension 12; the end of the extension is preferably pointed or tapered as at 13, whereby the operations to be later set forth are rendered more facile. Beyond the osets 11, and spaced a suitable distance therefrom, are second offsets 14, the outer edge portions of which lie nearer the longitudinal axis of the body member than the first offsets 11, these second offsets being designed to lie adjacent the first ones when the body member is folded in order Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed. March 19, 1912.

Patented Apr. 1, 1913.

serial No. 684,680.

to form a seal. The other end portion of the body member may also be termed an eX- tension 15, the width of which is substantially equal to the width of the first extension 12. This second extension is provided with a transversely extending slit 16; secured to said extension is a tongue 17, made in any desirable manner, preferably provided vvith ears 1S on opposite sides adjacent one end adapted to be bent around the second extension 15 as shown in Fig. 4 whereby the tongue is held in position thereon. Such construction involves making the body member in one piece, the tongue being also made in one piece; such integral constructions provide for low cost of manufacture which is desirable in view of the large numbers of such devices which are used.

The manner of bending the parts to form the marketable device is as follows, the body member and the extensions being in the position shown in E ig. 4; the tongue 17 is on top of the body member between the offsets 14, which'position is brought about by bending the second extension 15 until it comes adjacent the body member between the said offsets; the body member is again bent between the offsets 14 and the offsets 11; the portions of the body member comprising the offsets 11 and the osets 14 being brought into close contact, the parts being secured together by bending the outer edge portions of the offsets 11 over the upturned offsets 14 as shown particularly in Fig. 3. With the parts of the seal in such position, which represents the article as a marketable device, as shown particularly in Fig. 5, the manner of use in order to arrive at the closed position of the seal will be described in connection with Figs. 2 and 5. The end of the extension 12 which contains the slit 10 is inserted between the offsets 11 into the opening or pocket 100 until the slit passes beyond the free end of the tongue 17, after which a return movement of the extension 12 will bring the free end of the tongue 17 into the slit 10, further movement of the extension 12 bringing the end 13 thereof into position adjacent the slit 16, as shown particularly in Fig. 2. 1n this position of the parts the slitted end o-f the tongue 12 can be withdrawn from such position only by mutilating or destroying the seal, since the interlocking of the parts as described holds them in such position, separation being prevented by reason of the engagement of the end 13 within the said slit 1G. With the seal in such position access to the car or in fact any article so sealed is indicated by the appearance of the seal, since tampering therewith is easily detected by inspection of the seal.

The device is preferably made of sheet metal of such resiliency that the described operations of bending may be performed without breaking it.

Wvhat we claim as our invention is* A seal comprising a body portion having slits adjacent the ends, spaced offsets on opposite sides of the body portion intermediate the slits, the said offsets on each side being unequal in width, the offsets opposite each other being equal in width, the said oii'sets being adapted to be bent upwardly from the said body portion, and a tongue carried by the body portion adjacent one of the slits,

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents the body `portion being adapted to be bent successively adjacent the tongue and bet-Ween the said offsets, whereby the tongue and some of the offsets are brought into position between the other offsets, the edge portions of the said other offsets being adapted to be bent into engagement with the first offsets,

the other end of the body member being adapted to be entered into position between the said first offsets with the slit in engagement with the said tongue and withthe end in engagement with the slit normally lying adjacent the tongue.

In testimony whereof we have signed our namesl in the presence of two witnesses.

JAMES WV. BO/VER. HARVEY WV. GREEMANN. l/Vitnesses JOHN B. SHEPARD, GILns MANUEL.

Washington, ID. G. 

